UK Announces Plan To Ban Internet Porn

One step forward, two steps back is the name of the game in the United Kingdom this week. On the one hand, the government managed to finally legalize marriage equality for England and Wales; on the other, Prime Minister David Cameron will today announce plans to censor Internet porn in the U.K.

"By the end of this year, when someone sets up a new broadband account the settings to install family-friendly filters will be automatically selected. If you just click 'next' or 'enter', then the filters are automatically on.

"And, in a really big step forward, all the ISPs have rewired their technology so that once your filters are installed, they will cover any device connected to your home internet account. No more hassle of downloading filters for every device, just one-click protection. One click to protect your whole home and keep your children safe.

"Once those filters are installed, it should not be the case that technically literate children can just flick the filters off at the click of a mouse without anyone knowing. So we have agreed with industry that those filters can only be changed by the account holder, who has to be an adult. So an adult has to be engaged in the decisions."

That's right, if a new broadband customer accidentally clicks "next" or "enter" while setting up their service and they lose access to the entire Internet, they will have to call their ISP and provide their full identity information before being allowed on the uncensored Internet.

If Cameron and co. wish to oppress its population by forbidding access to something the rest of the industrialized world enjoys because WON'T SOMEBODY THINK ABOUT THE CHILDREN, then the U.K. government is missing the mark. The problem isn't porn, it's another p word entirely: parenting.